State-owned freight and logistics group Transnet and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) have stipu- lated that local fabricators must comply with the European Standard (EN) 15085 for the construction, manufacturing and testing of welded rail vehicles and components to be eligible as subcontractors for South Africa’s R100-billion rail infrastructure upgrade programmes.

French-headquartered multinational manufacturing company Alstom, Chinese State-owned locomotive and rolling stock manufacturer China South Rail (CSR), Zhuzhou and China North Rail (CNR) have been awarded the majority of the primary contracts for the R100-billion upgrade programmes.

However, Southern African Institute of Welding (SAIW) operations GM Sean Blake says that local companies that do not comply with the EN 15085 standard will “certainly miss an important opportunity to be awarded subcontracts on these projects”.

He explains that many local fabricators feel that when they are ISO 3834:2005-certified, in terms of the quality requirements for fusion welding of metallic materials in workshops and in the field, there is no need for EN 15085 certification.

“This is not the case and our fabricators, if they want to make the most out of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, must not make this mistake,” Blake emphasises.

He says that while it is true that EN 15085 is closely aligned to ISO 3834,“it must be understood that EN 15085 is a product-specific standard for the construction, manufacturing and testing of welded rail vehicles and components, and Alstom’s, CSR’s and CNR’s requirements are that local companies which will work as its subcontractors must be certified accordingly”.

CSR will supply 359 electric locomotives and CNR 232 diesel locomotives to Transnet, giving them a collective 56% of a tender for the manufacture of 1 064 locomotives.

The locomotives are earmarked for Transnet’s general freight business, the most important area of its strategy to shift freight from road to rail.

Transnet aims to increase general freight volumes to 170-million tons by 2019, from 82.6-million tons.

Additionally, Alstom will supply PRASA with 600 passenger trains, or 3 600 coaches, between 2015 and 2025.

The contract includes the construction of a local manufacturing facility.

The project, forms part of PRASA’s quest to revitalise the rail industry, create jobs and provide efficient, reliable and safe public transport, is one of the biggest in rail transport worldwide and is the largest contract ever signed in Alstom’s history.

Both the Transnet and PRASA contracts have a stringent local-manufacturing stipulation of 60% to 70% for the passenger coaches, 55% for the diesel locomotives and 60% for the electric locomotives, affording local fabricators one of the biggest opportunities in South African industrial history.

However, Blake reiterates that all parties will insist that local fabricators are EN 15085- certified.

“For the Chinese, this has special significance as Transnet initially came under fire for ignoring rumours of dubious quality with respect to the Chinese tender winners, who will go to great lengths to ensure that their quality is nothing short of world class,” he says.

One of the main quality control measures will be EN 15085, which is an important standard in both Europe and China, with a total of 931 manufacturers having been certified in Germany and 360 in China.

“These are indeed significant numbers in this limited fabrication sector and local fabricators should take heed of them,” states Blake.

SAIW executive director Jim Guild concurs with Blake that any fabricator serious about being part of these initiatives will have to become EN 15085-certified.

He adds that the institute is doing what it can to facilitate local certification.

“We have been talking to EN 15085 experts worldwide in our pursuit to make the process as easy as possible for local fabricators, and we are establishing a cooperative relationship with German welding society Deutscher Verband für Schweißen, which will ensure manufacturers have access to both prepara- tory advice and EN certification. I urge all those interested to watch the SAIW press and website over the next few months for details,” Guild concludes.